Postgraduate-Year-1 Residents' Perceptions of Social Media and Virtual Applicant Recruitment: Cross-sectional Survey Study.

BACKGROUND: The dissemination of information about residency programs is a vital step in residency recruitment. Traditional methods of distributing information have been printed brochures, websites, in-person interviews, and increasingly, social media. Away rotations and in-person interviews were cancelled, and interviews were virtual for the first time during the COVID-19 pandemic. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of our study was to describe postgraduate-year-1 (PGY1) residents' social media habits in regard to residency recruitment and their perceptions of the residency programs' social media accounts in light of the transition to virtual interviews. METHODS: A web-based 33-question survey was developed to evaluate personal social media use, perceptions of social media use by residency programs, and perceptions of the residency program content. Surveys were sent in 2021 to PGY1 residents at Mayo Clinic in Arizona, Florida, and Minnesota who participated in the 2020-2021 interview cycle. RESULTS: Of the 31 program directors contacted, 22 (71%) provided permission for their residents to complete the survey. Of 219 residents who received the survey, 67 (30%) completed the survey. Most respondents applied to a single specialty, and greater than 61% (41/67) of respondents applied to more than 30 programs. The social media platforms used most regularly by the respondents were Instagram (42/67, 63%), Facebook (36/67, 54%), and Twitter (22/67, 33%). Respondents used the program website (66/67, 99%), residents (47/67, 70%), and social media (43/67, 64%) as the most frequent resources to research programs. The most commonly used social media platforms to research programs were Instagram (38/66, 58%), Twitter (22/66, 33%), and Doximity (20/66, 30%). The type of social media post ranked as most interesting by the respondents was "resident life outside of the hospital." In addition, 68% (39/57) of the respondents agreed or strongly agreed that their perception of a program was positively influenced by the residency program's social media account. CONCLUSIONS: In this multispecialty survey of PGY1 residents participating in the 2020-2021 virtual interview season, respondents preferred Instagram to Twitter or Facebook for gathering information on prospective residency programs. In addition, the program website, current residents, and social media platforms were the top-ranked resources used by prospective applicants. Having an up-to-date website and robust social media presence, particularly on Instagram, may become increasingly important in the virtual interview environment.

The Society for Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology Coronavirus Disease 2019 Registry: An Analysis of Outcomes Among Pregnant Women Delivering During the Initial Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 Outbreak in the United States.

BACKGROUND: Early reports associating severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection with adverse pregnancy outcomes were biased by including only women with severe disease without controls. The Society for Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology (SOAP) coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) registry was created to compare peripartum outcomes and anesthetic utilization in women with and without SARS-CoV-2 infection delivering at institutions with widespread testing. METHODS: Deliveries from 14 US medical centers, from March 19 to May 31, 2020, were included. Peripartum infection was defined as a positive SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction test within 14 days of delivery. Consecutive SARS-CoV-2-infected patients with randomly selected control patients were sampled (1:2 ratio) with controls delivering during the same day without a positive test. Outcomes were obstetric (eg, delivery mode, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, and delivery <37 weeks), an adverse neonatal outcome composite measure (primary), and anesthetic utilization (eg, neuraxial labor analgesia and anesthesia). Outcomes were analyzed using generalized estimating equations to account for clustering within centers. Sensitivity analyses compared symptomatic and asymptomatic patients to controls. RESULTS: One thousand four hundred fifty four peripartum women were included: 490 with SARS-CoV-2 infection (176 [35.9%] symptomatic) and 964 were controls. SARS-CoV-2 patients were slightly younger, more likely nonnulliparous, nonwhite, and Hispanic than controls. They were more likely to have diabetes, obesity, or cardiac disease and less likely to have autoimmune disease. After adjustment for confounders, individuals experiencing SARS-CoV-2 infection exhibited an increased risk for delivery <37 weeks of gestation compared to controls, 73 (14.8%) vs 98 (10.2%) (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.47; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03-2.09). Effect estimates for other obstetric outcomes and the neonatal composite outcome measure were not meaningfully different between SARS-CoV-2 patients versus controls. In sensitivity analyses, compared to controls, symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 patients exhibited increases in cesarean delivery (aOR, 1.57; 95% CI, 1.09-2.27), postpartum length of stay (aOR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.18-2.60), and delivery <37 weeks of gestation (aOR, 2.08; 95% CI, 1.29-3.36). These adverse outcomes were not found in asymptomatic women versus controls. SARS-CoV-2 patients (asymptomatic and symptomatic) were less likely to receive neuraxial labor analgesia (aOR, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.35-0.75) and more likely to receive general anesthesia for cesarean delivery (aOR, 3.69; 95% CI, 1.40-9.74) due to maternal respiratory failure. CONCLUSIONS: In this large, multicenter US cohort study of women with and without peripartum SARS-CoV-2 infection, differences in obstetric and neonatal outcomes seem to be mostly driven by symptomatic patients. Lower utilization of neuraxial analgesia in laboring patients with asymptomatic or symptomatic infection compared to patients without infection requires further investigation.

Getting the First Thousand-Optimizing Instagram Residency Content to Increase Followers During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Social media remains a growing platform for physicians to facilitate learning, network, and disseminate information. The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has challenged traditional medical student recruitment and outreach. Instagram is a platform that can be used by residency programs to increase engagement and as a potential recruitment tool. The authors present social media failed and successful strategies used to increase engagement and gain new followers. METHODS: In June 2020, an initiative began to use Instagram on a more frequent and intentional basis. Three different strategies were implemented during the pandemic: mirroring Twitter posts, increasing multimedia, and leveraging Instagram Stories. The outcomes of interest included number of followers and engagement on posts. Data were collected October 2020. RESULTS: After June 1, 2020, the @mayoanesthesia account gained 1000 followers through 127 days, an average of 4.26 new followers each day. Before June 1, there were 24 total posts over 3.3 years with a total of 458 followers. Three different strategies were implemented at different times during the pandemic. During the mirroring Twitter posts period, the mean number of interactions per post was 14.5. During the second phase after separating the Twitter and Instagram strategy, the mean number of interactions per post increased to 57.8. CONCLUSION: Residency programs can creatively, yet methodically, use Instagram posts to increase social media engagement during resident recruitment season during the COVID-19 pandemic and likely beyond.